TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers wrapped up the first week of training camp with a milestone that eluded them all of last season: their projected starting offensive line being on the field at the same time.
Last season, the unit played a grand total of zero snaps together.
Injuries prevented Tampa Bay from fortifying the front line, most notably guard Cody Mauch, who injured his knee in Week 2 and never returned.
Mauch tore the meniscus in his left knee during a Week 2 game against Houston — but finished the game. He hadn't been injured in his football life before that.
After a positive test run in minicamp, Mauch says he's back to 100%.
"Three days in. No issues at all. So it's feeling great," Mauch said after Friday's practice.
Mauch hadn't put on pads since September, but says he's ready to move forward.
"[Minicamp was a] good testing process to see how it is, how it was feeling. There were no issues then. Good again, now," Mauch added. "To come back to this and no issues, again. Pretty pumped about that. Put that behind me now, and now we're on to this year and find things to get better at."
Teammate and fellow offensive lineman Ben Bredeson wasn't surprised Mauch gutted out the rest of that game after the injury.
"Cody's a tough guy. He's one of the toughest guys I've ever played with, for sure. He's a farm boy from North Dakota, so it fits pretty well," Bredeson joked.
Perhaps no one is more relieved to see a healthy offensive line than quarterback Baker Mayfield.
"It's a very freeing feeling to have those guys out there. They're savages up front. They're really good. Their chemistry is unbelievable," Mayfield said after Thursday's workout. "They know what we're trying to get done. When they're on the same page, our offense is just clicking. So, it starts with those guys and goes from there."
The Buccaneers have a day off Saturday before returning to work Sunday morning. They'll practice in pads for the first time on Monday.
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